The present invention relates to waterbed mattresses, and in particular waterbed mattresses having a baffle structure.
Waterbed mattresses having baffles are well known. For example, waterbed mattresses having a horizontal baffle are described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,247,962 issued to Charles P. Hall and application Ser. No. 95,214 filed on Nov. 19, 1979 by Charles P. Hall, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,345,348. Waterbed mattresses using fibrous material for a baffling effect are known, Waterbed mattresses having a plurality of cells or apertured chambers are described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,221,013 to Echavarria and U.S. Pat. No. 4,204,289 to to Fogel. Advantages are claimed for each of these baffle structures. For example, the Hall horizontal baffle has been shown to reduce wave motion faster than a vertical baffle. The fiber baffle is claimed to have advantages compared to a foam baffle. Chambers are claimed to have a wave reduction feature because a wave entering the chamber only slowly exits through the apertures.
A disadvantage of waterbed mattresses is having a fiber baffle is that the fiber is difficult to drain when emptying the mattress. A difficulty with the Fogel cell structure is that it is complex to manufacture.